


Flowers

by probsnothawkeye



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Also probably a lil ooc, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, And have never written for TAZ before so please go easy on me, And some lyrics from there as well, Dreams, Fluff, Happy Ending, I haven't written a fic in almost a year, M/M, Oh also, References to Hadestown, a lil cheesy but what can you do?, for sure, light angst maybe?, overuse of static writing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-13
Updated: 2020-01-13
Packaged: 2021-02-27 12:49:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,212
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22237384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/probsnothawkeye/pseuds/probsnothawkeye
Summary: "There was a pause, and Taako could tell that Magnus was trying to figure out if he should continue pressing the issue. 'I’ve… I’ve been having these weird dreams lately. Which is weird, because I don’t usually dream when I’m meditating which means I’m actually sleeping. And we already discussed that Taako is having none of that anymore. Anyway, they feel supes real, Mango. Too real to be dreams.'"Taako has been dreaming more than he ever intends to, but are they even dreams at all?Inspired by the music of Hadestown.
Relationships: Magnus Burnsides & Taako, Magnus Burnsides/Taako
Comments: 6
Kudos: 37





	Flowers

**Author's Note:**

> Hello hello!
> 
> Happy New Year! I haven't written a fic since March of last year and in that time I've gotten SUPER in The Adventure Zone which caused me to feel a burst of inspiration the likes of which I haven't seen in ages. That's what made this happen!  
> Title (and some lines) taken from Hadestown, one of my favorite musicals at the moment.   
> Would like to go on the record and state that I do love Taakitz (Kravitz is an incredible character) as well as Taagnus, but Taagnus just worked so well with what I wanted to do for this fic.

_ “Come home with me?” Taako heard a man ask from beside him, giving him a small, sincere grin. _

_ Taako scoffed, “Who are you?” he asked jokingly. Of course he knew the man. This man was the love of his life. _

_ “The man who’s gonna marry you!” The man said with an even wider grin. “I’m M̴̨̆̕a̷̼̅̈́g̶͖̗ǹ̶̛̻̭u̸̠̳͑̉s̸̻̯͗.” _

_ Taako shook his head. “What did you say your name was?” _

_ “M̴̨̆̕a̷̼̅̈́g̶͖̗ǹ̶̛̻̭u̸̠̳͑̉s̸̻̯͗.” _

_ Something was wrong. Taako could feel it sinking into the world around him. As he tried to cast his gaze directly at the man, all that could be seen was static. Static was filling his vision as Taako stumbled backwards away from the man. “Get away from me!” _

_ “Taako, come on, this isn’t funny anymore. It’ s me, M̴̨̆̕a̷̼̅̈́g̶͖̗ǹ̶̛̻̭u̸̠̳͑̉s̸̻̯͗, you know me! You love me!” _

_ “Get away!” Taako said, sending a small blast with his umbrella before running out the door. Once outside, the world around him continued to fill with static. Why was there so much static? _

_ Who was that man? _ __   
  


_ What was going on? _

Taako awoke with a loud yell, sitting straight up in his bed and grabbing the Umbra-Staff. Looking around, Taako saw that he was alone. There was no one here. No static. 

So why couldn’t his heart stop racing?

“Taako?” a voice called from his bedroom door.  _ Familiar. Safe. Magnus. _ “You okay?”

“I’m fine, Maggie,” Taako said, trying to calm his erratic heartbeat and keep his voice light. “Must’ve fallen asleep for real after that mission. Never making THAT mistake again, that’s for sure. Taako is sticking to meditation from here on out.”

Magnus chuckled, still not entering Taako’s room. “As long as you’re sure, dude. I’m gonna go back to sleep then. Goodnight.”

“Night, Mango,” Taako said as the door slid shut. Turning to the messy desk beside him, Taako pulled out a small journal and a pen. The journal contained all of the remnants of dreams he had been having lately as sleep overtook him from his meditation. Thinking of tonight's encounter, he scribbled down some words.  _ Bar. Man. Familiar. Lover? Static.  _ All of the notes ended with static. 

***

_ Taako was laying with someone in a warm, familiar bed. Soft, colorful lights danced across the ceiling, and Taako felt calmer than he had in ages. Turning to snuggle closer to the man, Taako gave a small sigh.  _

_ “What’s wrong?” the man asked and Taako could feel the rumble of his voice as he laid his head on the man’s chest. _

_ “I can’t even begin to remember the last time I felt like this,” Taako answered honestly, shocking both the man and himself. “I mean… Fuck, M̴̨̆̕a̷̼̅̈́g̶͖̗ǹ̶̛̻̭u̸̠̳͑̉s̸̻̯͗, you take me in your arms and suddenly there’s sunlight all around me. I feel bright and warm and the world shines like it never did before. And…” Taako falls silent, starting to take in the static that is creeping into his vision. _

_ “And?” the man prods gently.  _

_ Taako shakes his head, as if that would clear the static. “And for a moment I forget just how dark and cold the world gets. I was alone so long, and I didn’t even know that I was lonely because all I ever knew was how to hold my own and- Wait. That isn’t right.” _

_ Taako himself up in the bed, distancing himself from the man as more static started to flood his vision. “I’ve never been alone, M̴̨̆̕a̷̼̅̈́g̶͖̗ǹ̶̛̻̭u̸̠̳͑̉s̸̻̯͗, there was always L̷̯̭̃ŭ̶̗p̶̹̠̉ and now I have you and B̴̥͙̥͐̐ạ̴̠̈̑̒ŗ̴̨͍͆ŕ̶̓ͅy̴͔̝̘̑͛ ̷̛̳̤̿̃a̶̞͐n̵̯̞d̴̠̿̒͠ ̸̭̮̣͑̇͝L̵͔̞̫̍ủ̴̧͔̥́ć̷̙̯̠͂r̶̺̩̿̎͊e̸͓͗̐t̸̞̞̾i̶̛̛̲͈͆a̶͋̔̋͜ ̷̛̼̱̍̽a̴̡̘̪̚n̴̦͉͔̒d̷̲͓̎͜ ̸̰͉̭̄̚M̵̡̨̛̤̊e̷̢͉͋r̴̛̭̳̔̇l̷̙͚̅͋̕ͅe̶̫̺͑̕ ̴͍̬̈́̅͜͝a̸̟̔̀ņ̸̮̝͗d̸̓͜ ̷̺̘D̷̦̲͚̃̃͝ạ̶̞̊͂ͅv̵̙͓̎ḛ̷̹͝n̴̦̔̒p̷̺̫͙̍̒͘ō̷͔̐̚͜r̷̘̞̔ẗ̵͈́̐͝ and why is my voice static M̴̨̆̕a̷̼̅̈́g̶͖̗ǹ̶̛̻̭u̸̠̳͑̉s̸̻̯͗? _

_ All of Taako wanted to rush back into the man’s arms, knowing they would provide him with comfort. But as he turned to face his lover, all he saw was static pouring from the space he was looking at. _

_ M̴̨̆̕a̷̼̅̈́g̶͖̗ǹ̶̛̻̭u̸̠̳͑̉s̸̻̯͗? _

Taako was more aware of himself as he woke up this time, a familiar name on his tongue but he couldn’t quite place it. Looking around, Taako saw Magnus and Merle sleeping in their sleeping bags. They were on another mission for the Bureau, not a Grand Relic this time, but something smaller. The Director said they would head out for the next Relic not long after their return.

Sighing to himself, Taako got up and walked a little ways away from their campsite. Maybe it was a stupid move, but Taako liked to think he had a good handle on himself. There was a small lake near where they were sleeping, so Taako decided to sit next to him and stare up at the stars. The action was comforting, something he had done thousands of times before. 

“Mind if I join you?”

Taako whipped his head around to see Magnus walking towards him. “Jesus fantasy christ, Magnus, you scared me.”

Magnus at least had the decency to look slightly sheepish at that. “Sorry, I heard you get up and didn’t want you to go out on your own.”

Taako rolled his eyes. “But you were totes chill with leaving a sleeping Merle alone at our campsite. He is the only one of us who knows how to heal, you know.”

“I mean…” Magnus trailed off, shaking his hand in a so-so motion, causing both of them to burst out laughing. “Besides, Merle’s asleep. He’s not going to get in any trouble. You, on the other hand. Who knows what you’re gonna do.”

Though they hadn’t known each other for all that long, only joining the Bureau together about a year and a half ago, every interaction Taako had with Magnus felt easy. It was like they had known each other their entire lives rather than just that short year. Taako felt safe with Magnus (and, to a lesser extent, Merle), which wasn’t something Taako was used to feeling. 

The two of them sat in silence under the stars for a while. The action, like Magnus himself, felt eerily familiar, as if the two of them had done this hundreds of times. As much as he wanted to, Taako felt it best not to question it.

Questioning it never lead anywhere good.

***

_ Taako was laying in a field of flowers, partially in the shade of a beautiful willow tree.  _

_ He sees the man walking over to him, choosing to lie down beside him. They were looking at each other for a moment, and joy and love bloomed in Taako’s chest. He turned his head away, face in the shade, so the person couldn’t see the blush coating his cheeks. _

_ He felt calm, calmer than he had in forever. They had found t̸͕̯̋̿͒h̸̙̆̈́̊ͅe̷̡͌̆̔ ̸̝̞͊L̴̬̲̅ị̶͒̿̈́g̵̨̲͑̀h̶̭̳͔̏̏͝ţ̸̅ ̴̹̝̳͆͊o̴͈̯̰̍f̴̝̥̽̄̌ ̴̦͝C̷͔̃̚r̵̢̛̻͈̿e̷̺̹͗ả̴̝͎̂t̸̛̫̼͖̏̾i̵̭̩͖̔̚ȯ̶͚ṇ̵̥̈́, and so much earlier than they usually did. Now they finally had a chance to relax for longer than a night in the cycle.  _

_ Wait. _

_ What did they find? _

_ Who were they? _

_ Who was here with him? Taako knew he had seen him before, but that was just in dreams. This was too real to be a dream. _

_ So why was the man so familiar? _

_ Static started to fill the vision around him, panic flowing through his entire being. The static only happened in the dreams. This couldn’t be a dream, he knew this place. He knew this man! But who? _

_ Who? _

_ Who? _

“WHO?!” Taako shouted, bolting upright in his bed. He felt shaken, static still dancing through his vision. His head was pounding, but there was still the slight essence of warmth in his chest.

“Taako?” a voice called softly from the door. Taako turned, vision finally clearing completely of the static, to see Magnus. “You okay, buddy?”

“Yeah, kimosabe, I’m good. Just… just a weird dream,” Taako said, trying to deflect how shaky he felt. It was a dream, just like the others. But it didn’t feel like it. “What are you doing up?”

“Couldn’t sleep. What were you doing sleeping?”

Taako cracked a smile. “Couldn’t stay up,” There was a pause, and Taako could tell that Magnus was trying to figure out if he should continue pressing the issue. “I’ve… I’ve been having these weird dreams lately. Which is weird, because I don’t usually dream when I’m meditating which means I’m actually sleeping. And we already discussed that Taako is having none of that anymore. Anyway, they feel supes real, Mango. Too real to be dreams.”

Magnus gestured into the room, silently asking if he could come all the way in. Taako nodded, inviting Magnus to sit down next to him. “So all those times I’ve heard you moving around after waking up, it was these weird dreams?”

“Yeah. It’s weird but… I remember it, Mags, this dream especially. I remember this place and these fields of flowers, soft, soft flowers. Walking through the field, feeling them beneath my feet. Laying down in the sun, feeling it’s warmth on my face. Someone is lying with me and…”

“And?” Magnus prods, scooting closer to Taako. 

“And it’s warm. And I feel safe. And I know them, Magnus. I know them. But I don’t know how! And when I start to place it, everything goes static, like before we drank the voidfish ichor go-gurt bullshit! Which is always how the dreams end. They always feel so real, Maggie. Real enough that I don’t think they’re dreams.” Taako sighs. “I don’t know what to do.”

A silence falls over them, Magnus looking at Taako with a contemplative look on his face. “I’m going to ask you something, and you can totally say no! But… Do you want me to stay with you? At least for tonight?”

Asking Magnus to stay had never really seemed like an option to Taako. Sure, the two of them were friends, much better friends than they had been when the dreams first started. But asking Magnus to stay? That seemed like stepping too far over the boundaries Taako had already constructed in his head. But since Magnus was asking… “That sounds nice.”

***

_ Taako was leaving. _

_ “Can’t I talk you into letting me come with you?” the man’s voice pleaded from behind him as Taako started shoving things into a backpack. “We already lost L̷̯̭̃ŭ̶̗p̶̹̠̉, I can’t stand to lose you too.” _

_ “M̴̨̆̕a̷̼̅̈́g̶͖̗ǹ̶̛̻̭u̸̠̳͑̉s̸̻̯͗, my heart is yours. Always was and will be. But she’s m̴̛̭̣̫y̵̤͐̎̅ ̶̢͍̳͑̽s̴̘͗i̴̢̋̈́s̵͇̠̑t̷̩͚̹́̅̾ë̴͇́̓r̴̟̃, I have to go after her! She’s just… She’s just gone, M̴̨̆̕a̷̼̅̈́g̶͖̗ǹ̶̛̻̭u̸̠̳͑̉s̸̻̯͗. I can't...” _

_ The man took Taako’s hands in his own. “I know you have to go after her. Really, Taako, I do. But please. Let me go with you. B̴̥͙̥͐̐ạ̴̠̈̑̒ŗ̴̨͍͆ŕ̶̓ͅy̴͔̝̘̑͛ is already gone half the time on the same quest as you and he’s a̸̛͍̩ ̴̖̺͂̈́͋͜l̶̪̕ȋ̵͖͌c̵̝͕̕ḥ̸, Taako. He’ll come back if he gets hurt. But you won’t. I can’t stand to lose you. Please. Don’t make me lose you.” _

_ Taako pressed a gentle kiss into his lover’s palm, before placing one on his lips. “My heart, it aches to stay or to take you with me. But the way is dark and long, M̷̤̦̟̏̅ạ̸͠g̷̰̯̭̒s̷̺̬͇͗͆͘, and it’s one I have to walk by myself. I promise I’ll come back.” _

_ M̴̨̆̕a̷̼̅̈́g̶͖̗ǹ̶̛̻̭u̸̠̳͑̉s̸̻̯͗ sighed. “Okay. Just check in with Barry before you leave, please. I’m gonna go and talk to ̸̭̮̣͑̇͝L̵͔̞̫̍ủ̴̧͔̥́ć̷̙̯̠͂r̶̺̩̿̎͊e̸͓͗̐t̸̞̞̾i̶̛̛̲͈͆a̶͋̔̋͜. I love you, Taako.” _

_ “I love you too.” _

Taako woke up with tears in his eyes. He knew, in his heart, that he never made it back where he said he would. There was no way these were actually dreams, they had to be memories. 

Sighing to himself, Taako got out of bed and headed towards Magnus’s room. They had a deal now, where if either one of them woke up from bad dreams they could go to the other’s room. Either to sleep or to talk, it didn’t matter. Sometimes they even let Merle or Angus join them, if they decided to talk in the living area rather than in one of their rooms, but mostly it was Taako and Magnus time. 

As Magnus opened the door to his room, Taako could tell the man hadn’t been asleep. Examining him more closely, it looked as though he hadn’t slept in days. “You okay, Mags?”

“‘M fine, Taako,” Magnus said, shutting the door softly behind him. “Just… Just haven’t been sleeping well the past few days is all.”

“Have you been sleeping at all, kimosabe?”

Magnus shook his head. “Not really, no. I guess… I guess Refuge really did a number on me, huh?”

“Do you wanna talk about it?”

Nodding slightly, Magnus started to talk about Julia, his former wife. He talked about how much he loved her, how much of a difference in his life she made. How guilty he felt that he didn’t die with her, that he wasn’t there to protect her. He talked about what June had offered him, suddenly stopping as if a thought just crashed into his brain. “Taako… I think there’s things that… I think we’re missing memories. When June was… with the chalice… There was a lot of static. Like before we met the voidfish. Like in your dreams. What if we’re missing something?”

Taako pondered this for a moment. “Well… If it’s true then I hope this person in my dreams is real. If they ever walk this way, I hope they find me.”

***

Lucreatia had been hiding stuff from them. 

This became abundantly clear as they felt Wonderland with Magnus’s mannequin body and even more clear as they stared down the small voidfish hidden in Lucreatia’s office.

Taako could hear her imploring him not to drink, telling him that it would be too much on his brain at one time, but he didn’t listen. He shot some of the liquid back, allowing the memories to start flowing in. 

The first was of Lup ( _ Lup! How did you forget your own sister? _ ), causing him to look down at the Umbra-Staff,  _ her _ Umbra-Staff, with nothing but pain on his face. Then the “dreams” started flooding back in.

_ “Who are you?” _

_ “The man who’s gonna marry you! I’m Magnus!” _

_ - _

_ “Fuck, Magnus, you take me in your arms and suddenly there’s sunlight all around me! _

_ - _

_ “Magnus, my heart is yours, always was and will be. But she’s my sister, I have to go after her! _

_ - _

_ Flowers. _

_ Fields and fields of flowers. _

_ They found the Light of Creation within the first few days of entering this plane, meaning they had more time to train but also to relax. There weren’t any other living creatures on the planet, but it was full of the most beautiful flora. Light, soft flowers that always popped back up even after being laid on. _

_ Taako spent a lot of time by the big willow tree close to the Starblaster, just laying in the flowers. Lately, Magnus had been joining him. They would lay there and talk and talk and talk. They had been together for twenty-five cycles, all of them are close but he and Magnus are so much closer. The only person above Magnus to him was Lup, but that was his twin so there was no beating that.  _

_ Magnus turned to look at him, his eyes full of emotion. Taako had to turn away, he was warm and blushing and so full of love. He felt Magnus grab his hand and place a kiss on it. Snapping his head back around, Taako found himself face to face with Magnus. Magnus smiled shyly. _

_ “Is this okay?” _

_ Taako leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss against his lips. _

_ “It’s more than okay.” _

Taako, snapping out of his trance, points the Umbra-Staff at Lucretia. “You took everything from me.”

There is commotion and chaos happening all around him, but Taako doesn’t care. He’s focused on Lucretia, who is trying to reason with him. But Taako was angry. She took his sister, his  _ sister _ , from him. She took his  _ family _ from him. She took  _ Magnus _ from him. 

Behind him, Taako hears a small, familiar groan. Without putting down the Umbra-Staff, he turned around and saw Magnus, clutching his head as the memories came back to him. Tears welled up in his eyes as he looked upon the man he loved a hundred years ago, and who he loves now. “It’s you.”

“It’s me,” Magnus said, his eyes becoming more clear as the wave of memories started to subside.

“Magnus.”

“Taako. Taako, I’m so sorry,” Magnus said, walking towards his friend, his former love. “I didn’t know, I didn’t-” 

Taako doesn’t give him a chance to finish his thought before allowing the Umbra-Staff to clatter to the ground as he throws himself into Magnus’s arms. “I thought I lost you. This whole time, I knew something was missing. I didn’t know it was Lup. I didn’t know it was  _ you _ . This whole time…”

“I’m here. I’m here, Taako, I’m here,” Magnus pressed a quick kiss to Taako’s forehead. “I’m never letting you go again.”

***

The battle with the Hunger was raging on.

They were getting their asses handed to them, the Hunger was too strong to contain on the moon base. They needed to do something. 

Angus picks up the Umbra-Staff (his  _ sister’s _ Umbra-Staff), asking if he can use it. Taako nods, too tired to fight him on the emotionality of the staff. But the fireball Angus casts is far too strong to be his own. It looked so familiar. Too familiar...

When Taako realizes that Lup is still in the staff, cracking it open and releasing his sister, she looks at him. “Finally you and Magnus got back together! I was dying in there, think you’d end up dating the Grim Reaper!” 

And Taako couldn’t help himself, he just laughed. His sister was back, his true love was by his side, his family was whole again.

They had a battle to win.

***

It was long after the Hunger had been defeated. Long after the seven members of the IPRE had a chance to talk (Taako was still angry with Lucretia, he probably always would be. But she was still his family, despite it all). Long after everyone else had settled down to sleep, Taako was slipping out of his room and standing in front of Magnus’s door. 

“Thought you might stop by,” Magnus said, pressing a kiss to Taako’s cheek as he slid through the doorway. “I still can’t believe…”

“You did it.”

“Did what?” Magnus asked as Taako sat down on his bed. 

“I told you, after Refuge, after that dream about cycle 25 and all the flowers. I told you that if the person in my dreams was real, I hope they find me,” Taako looked at Magnus, a smile coloring his face. “And you did.”

Magnus sat down next to Taako, taking his hand. “I’m sorry I lost you in the first place.”

“Mags, honey, that was out of our control. You’re here now. You’re here now and we remember. That’s all that matters,” Taako said, leaning over to give Magnus a gentle kiss on the lips. “I don’t know where the road from here ends, Magnus. But I’ll walk it with you hand in hand for as long as you’ll let me. Do you let me walk with you, Magnus?”

“I do.”

“And we’ll keep on walking come what will?”

“We will,” Magnus said, pulling Taako into a tight hug. “I missed you, Taako.”

“You’ll never have to miss me again. Promise.”

And it was a promise he was finally able to keep.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Comments and kudos always appreciated but never required. I'm doing a major rebranding on tumblr (ireallyneedabetterusername) so why don't you stop by and say hi? It is sure to be a time. If you liked this and thought "Hey! I kinda want this lady to write more TAZ!" Leave me a comment or send me an ask on tumblr, I'm always open to prompts!


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